A free-speech institute on Tuesday sent a letter to President Donald Trump demanding the prolific tweeter President unblock certain Twitter users on grounds the practice violates the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.
TheNewsGuru reports some Twitter users had sued the President to the Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University in New York saying he is violating the First Amendment by blocking people from his feed.
Trump’s @realDonaldTrump account recently blocked a number of Twitter accounts that replied to his tweets with commentary that criticized, mocked or disagreed with his actions. The accounts are unable to see or respond to tweets from the personal account of the US President after the block.
The Knight First Amendment Institute said in its letter that the blocking suppressed speech in a public forum protected by the Constitution.
According to Reuters that reported the recent development, the White House did not respond to a request for comment, neither did Twitter Inc commented.
Alex Abdo, the institute’s senior staff attorney, likened Twitter to a modern form of town hall meeting or public comment periods for government agency proposals, both venues where U.S. law requires even-handed treatment of speech.
Eric Goldman, a Santa Clara University law professor who focuses on internet law, said that previous cases involving politicians blocking users on Facebook supported the Knight Institute’s position.
If the institute should sue, Trump could claim his @realDonaldTrump account is for personal use and separate from his official duties as president, Goldman said. But he called that defense “laughable.”
Trump also has a presidential @POTUS Twitter account. The Knight Institute said its arguments would apply with “equal force” to both accounts.
Further details available here.
Reuters